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• Bookseller review

  The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

  In 656 pitch-perfect pages Chabon distills the essence of Mid-20th Century America and crystallises the view of it as a shining Golden Age, contrasting the glory of the period with the horrors of WWII. This all-singing, all-dancing four-colour homage to the plucky comic book creators of 40's and 50's New York tells the fictional tale of Josef Kavalier and Sam Clay, who create the superhero character of 'The Escapist' to critical acclaim. As their hero enacts increasingly intricate feats of escape, his creators try to enact their own dramatic escapes, whether that be their own existence, relationships, or family members trapped in war-torn Poland. This is a novel truly epic in scope, geographically, emotionally and temporally, and fully deserving of its 2001 Pullitzer Prize win. Always serious in theme and execution, but never too serious in tone, this is precisely how the 'Great American Novel' should be pitched. Simply sensational

  Review by Nicky Boardman of the London - Islington Borders on 2009-02-04 15:01:18

• Bookseller review

  Outstanding!

  A sprawling tale of adventure and escape, covering Prague, New York and The Arctic.

  Review by Tom of the Borders on 2009-04-22 16:05:37

• 

  Simply and completely, perfection.

  One of the pleasures of working in a bookshop is the opportunity to recommend your favourites.

  It's a pretty hit-and-miss affair sometimes but one book has never let me down...

  In 656 pitch-perfect pages Chabon distills the essence of Mid-20th Century America and crystallises the view of it as a shining Golden Age, contrasting the glory of the period with the horrors of WWII.

  This all-singing, all-dancing four-colour homage to the plucky comic book creators of 40's and 50's New York tells the fictional tale of Josef Kavalier and Sam Clay, who create the superhero character of 'The Escapist' to critical acclaim. As their hero enacts increasingly intricate feats of escape, his creators try to enact their own dramatic escapes, whether that be their own existence, relationships, or family members trapped in war-torn Poland.

  This is a novel truly epic in scope, geographically, emotionally and temporally, and fully deserving of its 2001 Pullitzer Prize win. Always serious in theme and execution, but never too serious in tone, this is precisely how the 'Great American Novel' should be pitched. Simply sensational.

  Review by Nicky Boardman on 14:04, 04 Apr 2008

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• 

  Kavalier and Clay

  Set in the late '30s and early '40s, the novel follows two cousins Joe Kavalier, a young Jewish refugee from Czechoslovakia, and American Sam Clay, creators of superheroes and producers of comic books which attack the Nazis and inspire those who oppose them. The book pursues the most important questions of love and war, dreams and art, across pages lurid with longing and hope. No brief summary of the action, however, can begin to convey the depth and scope of this imaginative and original novel. I loved it.

  Review by Jameson Stride on 14:04, 04 Apr 2008

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  Spectacular

  This was an unexpected gem, found in a bring one leave one bookshelf in Bogota where I used to work. Having read this I am desperate to read more by the author, whose prose is rich without being hard to swallow, leaps through your mind and makes itself at home. I think of these characters as if I had known them all my life. Truly masterful storytelling from a writer who states he seeks to entertain, rather than to enlighten.

  Review by sam shortis on 14:24, 08 Jul 2009

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